T he new Apple Music streaming service has been live for about two weeks now, providing ample time to not just to test its various features out but to live with it. I suspect Apple Music will probably be especially interesting to slightly older users like me as in, over Not only are we used to the idea of paying for music, but Apple Music is designed to mesh with the digital collections we already own. You have to upgrade to the latest version of iTunes or the iOS operating system on your phone or tablet to see it. The songs or albums can stream to your computer, iPhone, or iPad over an Internet connection, or you can download them to play directly from your device. Music you bought on iTunes is still yours, though. If you start streaming music and listen a lot in your car, or while running or walking or otherwise out of wi-fi range, you are going to start eating up a lot of your wireless data plan. For example, my wife uses less than 1 gigabyte of data per month, while I often use more than 2 gigabytes. The difference is almost entirely my Spotify and now Apple Music usage.


Related Stories
Use Apple Music to download music or add it to your library
The giants of streaming offer a lot for music and podcast fans alike. Let's see how they compare on price, catalog, features and more. Apple Music and Spotify are the two biggest names in music streaming. Part of your choice comes down to where you listen -- so figuring out which one has the best smart speaker support is essential if you're enjoying music at home. But other factors such as music discovery and stream quality can be just as important if not more for keen music fans. This comparison is updated periodically with new information. Spotify is the most flexible option if you want to stream songs without paying, because it has a free, ad-supported tier.
Start your free trial.
Pocket-lint - Apple Music is a subscription-based music streaming service, like Spotify , offering access to over 50 million songs. It's packed with features, including offline listening for when you're not connected, and it combines all your music in one place - even songs ripped from a CD. Apple Music also offers up radio stations and integration with Siri so you can control most things with voice commands. This feature offers everything you need to know about Apple Music, including how much it costs, what it offers and how to use it. Apple Music launched in , following Apple's acquisition of Beats Electronics in that included the Beats Music subscription-based streaming service, which Apple discontinued. The Apple Music service not only lets you stream on-demand any track from the iTunes catalogue but also access all your music in one place, whether purchased from iTunes, copied from a CD, or downloaded from the web.
In comparison to music streaming sites like Spotify or Pandora, Apple Music can feel a bit mysterious. Anyone who signs up will have to pay a monthly fee to use the service. Considering that Apple Music offers live radio shows and interesting exclusives, this fee may be well worth it to the right buyers. Before we dive into the different pricing tiers Apple Music has to offer, we should note that all the subscriptions offer access to the same catalog of ad-free content, offline listening, Beats 1 live and on-demand radio shows, and exclusive releases. Just like Spotify , Apple offers all students with a valid student email address from a supported educational institution half-off an Apple Music membership. The offer is available only for college students at this time. Looking to enroll up to six people in your household in an Apple Music plan? Currently, to qualify for the free six months, you must be signed up for either the Play More or the Get More Unlimited plan through Verizon.